1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the control of an internal combustion engine.
2. Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,138,979 issued to Taplin teaches an electronically controlled closed loop system for maintaining a desired air/fuel ratio in an internal combustion engine. The operator positioned accelerator commands a given fuel flow, and the flow of air is controlled by means of a servo actuated throttle plate. The commanded fuel flow and the position of the throttle plate are provided as inputs to an electronic control unit, and these inputs are used to generate a basic command signal for controlling the servo motor to adjust the position of the throttle plate. The electronic control unit has an input from a manifold absolute pressure sensor. However, there is no discussion in the Taplin patent of stabilization of the throttle position.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,771,504 issued to R. L. Woods also teaches regulating an air/fuel mixture ratio in a fuel delivery system by scheduling air flow as a function of the operator's selected fuel flow. This is in contrast to other conventional systems wherein fuel flow is scheduled as a function of the operator's selected air flow. However, in the Woods patent, fluidic technology is used for the sensing, computation and actuation of the required variables. Again, there is no teaching of achieving throttle stability.